Chapter 9: A Ruler's Conduct

It was only an hour after dawn and the throne room was filled to the brim. Nobles, merchants and everyone who held even a bit of status was in attendance. Evileye sighed at the sight. When everyone with influence was gathered in the same place it was never a good sign. The throne room's occupants all had sweaty expressions and eyes filled with worry. The reason was of course because of the visitor they would have today.

As a foreigner and a person who lacked status Evileye should not have been in the throne room at that time. However, the visitor was very dangerous and their motive was unknown. If she became hostile the queen's guards would not be able to restrain her. That was why Blue Rose had been hired. They were an Adamantite ranked Adventurer group known in all the surrounding countries. If the visitor's intention was unfriendly surely they could restrain her.

That was what everyone was thinking as they looked at Blue Rose's leader.

However, none of the members of Blue Rose believed they stood a chance against her, not after listening to Gargaran describe what she had seen. When the queen's minister had first approached them and offered to hire them Evileye's first thought was to decline and leave the country. However, Blue Rose was unfortunately made up of thick headed fools who grew up listening to heroic tales. She had been outvoted four to one. And so she had no choice but to be here, constantly glaring at Lakyus and Gargaran. Even though her face was covered by a mask she knew they knew she was upset but they ignored her. This made Evileye angry. Hmf, and they called me irrational when I wanted to go and see Momon-sama, she mentally vented.

Her train of thought was cut short when the doors opened to admit the visitor. Suddenly the room that had been filled with quiet murmurs fell into complete silence. Everyone turned to the door and waited expectantly.

The person who stepped through the door was a youth of dark skin with hair white as snow and wore a suit to match. Her eyes were crimson, a deeper shade than Evileye's own. She was beautiful and had a dignified look about her. Her eyes looked straight ahead, trained on the queen, as she stepped onto the red carpet. In that moment Evileye stole a glance at the queen and saw her gulp uncomfortably. Even the members of her team were wary of the woman.

Behind the woman was a man in white armour. He stood at nearly two metres with orange spiky hair and carried a red spear that made Evileye uncomfortable. Unlike the young woman this man's eyes swept everywhere, watching everyone with vigilance. From the way he behaved he was probably her bodyguard. The strength radiating from him made Evileye want to leave this place as fast as she could. She looked at her teammates who were still looking at young woman. It seems they did not notice.

Behind the bodyguard was a shorter man with black hair and a beard. He seemed ordinary compared to the other two but Evileye felt something was off with him. She couldn't place it though and after seconds of trying to and failing she gave up and her sight returned to the young woman.

As she approached the throne the young woman's eyes left the queen's and to Evileye's surprise came to rest on her. Although it was only for a moment her intense gaze made her want to run away and was quite relieved when she looked away. However, her gaze, and that of her bodyguard, came to rest Lakyus or more accurately, her sword. The hostility in their eyes was not missed by any of Blue Rose's members. Gargaran inched closer to their leader, her eyes showing that she was ready to protect her with her life.

Luckily the two strangers were not looking for a fight and their attention returned to the queen. The young woman stopped when she reached the foot of the stairs to the throne and bowed to the childlike figure sitting on it. The black haired man bowed as well but the young woman's bodyguard just stood behind her. From his expression one could tell he thought bowing to the queen was beneath him and he was not happy that his charge had done it. His actions of course angered many in the room but no one dared to voice their dissatisfaction.

It was at this moment that the young woman spoke. "Your Majesty Queen Draudiron Oriculus. It is a pleasure to meet you at last. I am Shiva of Seraphim and behind me are my companions Ramiel and Niahoggr D'zak."

Niahoggr D'zak, Evileye thought to herself. I've heard that name before. However, she could not place it.

It seems though the queen knew who Niahoggr D'zak was because she gasped at the name. But her bewilderment only lasted a moment before her expression returned to normal.

"It is an honour to meet you," the queen said in her childish voice, looking at each of them. "Shiva-sama, Ramiel-sama and Niahoggr-sama. Please tell me Shiva-sama, where do you hail from?"

"My home is in the Gratis Plains," Shiva replied, causing some of the people in attendance to gasp. The Gratis Plains were known for being empty and unkind to humans. Three quarters of it was devoid of animal life and the last quarter was home to multiple Demi-Human races who were constantly at war with each other. Shiva did not pay mind to anyone who gasped and continued. "After staying there for a long time an adventurous sense overcame me and I decided to explore the world, which is how I ended up here." She gave the queen a faint smile as she said her next bit. "I must say, it's quite fortunate that I passed by at this moment. I can't even imagine what would have happened if I had decided to venture out a day or two later."

Shiva's words hit everyone hard. The queen and some nobles flinched. Even the members of her team reacted to these words. If Shiva had not appeared when she did this city, and probably the rest of the country, would have fallen in the hands of the beastmen and the citizen would have been demoted to livestock. Tia and Gargaran would have perished in the attack on the city.

The first to recover was Queen Draudiron and she responded with humility, something rarely displayed by rulers. "And for your help we of the Draconic Kingdom express our gratitude. Is there any way we can repay you?"

"Yes of course," Shiva answered. "But first your Majesty; would you mind if I addressed your court directly."

"Um- of course not," Draudiron said, but Evileye saw the worry in her eyes. "Go ahead."

"Thank you," Shiva bowed again, causing Ramiel's brow the crease even more. Without giving him any mind she turned to face the gathered nobles and when she spoke her voice was not as polite as it was when she had been talking to the queen. "Alright, I want to know, who of you own the lands and cities that were captured by the beastmen?"

There was an uncomfortable shuffle in the audience as four men were pushed to the front. Three among them were old while the other was middle-aged. They tried to introduce themselves but Shiva stopped them by rudely proclaiming: "I don't care who you are. I just want to know why you are here and not trying to liberate those cities."

"What do you mean miss?" one of the old men asked, puzzled. "Our forces are not strong enough to deal with those filthy beastmen. If they were we would have taken the fight to those bastards long ago."

"Is that so?" Shiva asked, her face had become expressionless.

"Yes," another old man answered. "It was all we could do to escape with our families."

"And what of your subjects, the people who were left behind?" Shiva questioned. "Why did you not try to save them?"

The third old man spoke next. "We thought it my lady. Unfortunately there had just not been enough time so we had to make a choice between our subjects and our families. You understand why we chose our families don't you my lady?"

"That I do," Shiva said with a sombre tone. "But why are you here?"

The old man and his companions, and practically everyone in the room, was confused. "What do you mean my lady?"

Shiva sighed before she stared the man straight in the face. "Have you ever heard the phrase the captain goes down with the ship? It means a captain is responsible for his ship and its crew and if disaster strikes he will save them or die trying. Do you understand what I'm getting at?"

The middle-aged noble looked at Shiva as if she had grown a second head. "Surely you jest young lady. You would have us give our lives for commoners?" The whole idea sounded preposterous. Almost everyone in the throne room now looked at the white haired woman with disdain.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Shiva's serious tone sobered many of them up. Unfortunately the middle-aged noble was not one of them. He abandoned the courteous pretence and went full on hostility.

"Little girl," he said with a mocking tone. "Do you have any idea what you're talking about?"

Evileye quickly looked at the queen and saw her features had turned unpleasant after the middle-aged noble's comment. Her hands, which were now tightly gripping the arms of the throne, had been drained of all colour. The look she gave Shiva was one of fear, she expected the young would woman to lose it any moment and attack the foolish noble. Evileye could almost feel the Queen Draudiron's dilemma; if Shiva attacked the noble and she intervened she would be destroyed with him and if she let Shiva do as she pleases in her own court she would become the laughing stock of all the rulers in neighbouring kingdoms, not to mention she might lose the support of her subjects. It was a really tough choice for her.

Luckily she did not have to make it because Shiva did not seem in the least bit affected by the man's words. The same however could not be said for her bodyguard.

"You foolish mortal!" Ramiel hissed. He grabbed his spear and moved towards the man. "You dare!"

No one believed for a second that Ramiel would not kill the man. Everyone distanced themselves from him and the man himself could only watch on in terror as Ramiel raised his spear. Fortunately, before Ramiel acted the Shiva put a stop to it. Her mere mention of his name halted his footsteps. Then he retreated to stand next to his charge.

"Please forgive me for rush actions," he muttered. His words were carried over to half the people in attendance.

"It's fine," Shiva stated calmly. "Such pettiness is more amusing than insulting, so you needn't take offense." The nobleman seemed he was going to retaliate but in the end, much to everyone's relief, thought the better of it. Shiva's next question caught not only him but everyone else off guard. "Do you still lay claim to those lands?"

"What?" the four noblemen asked with perplexed tones.

Shiva calmly repeated her question and put more emphasis into it. "Even though the beastmen now hold your territories do you still clam them as your own?"

"Of course," one of the older noblemen replied. "Our families have owned those lands for generations. We were born on those lands and plan for our sons to succeed us. Those lands are rightfully ours!"

This response was natural and many in the room agreed with it. Even Lakyus gave a slight nod of support. However, Shiva seemed to find something wrong with it because she sighed in what looked like resignation.

"I'm sure you are all aware of how conquest works," she said unexpectedly. "Those lands were captured by the beastmen hence they now belong to them. You have no stake at them." This time it was Shiva's turn to mock the nobleman. "Unless of course you retake them."

No one reacted to this statement. Evileye was certain that if Blue Rose were hired it was certain they would liberate the captured cities from the beastman scourge. However, for this country's nobles it was different. If they'd had the power to retake their cities the country would not have sunk into its current state.

"Ah! So now we're on the same page?" Shiva exclaimed. "Good to know. Well, last night while many of you were celebrating I took the liberty of driving the beastmen out of those cities so they belong to me now. Does anyone object?"

The girl's casual statement shocked everyone. Under normal circumstances no one would have believed what she had just said, but everyone present knew that this youth was responsible for the events that happened the previous day. None could deny that she was capable of doing what she claimed. When they saw how serious her expression was they could do not but accept what she claimed as fact. And of course her taking the lands for herself did not sit well with the four noblemen.

"You're joking right?" the middle aged man repeated.

"You think so?" Shiva asked contemptuously.

"This is madness!" one of the older men cried out. His gaze turned to the childlike figure on the throne. "Your Majesty please."

However, the queen said nothing. Although her hands had slackened on the thrones arms and regained their colour this time it was her face that was drained of colour. Shiva's declaration about taking four of the Draconic Kingdom's cities completely paralysed her. If the white haired youth did so she would have more territory and, by extension, more power than the queen herself. Faced with this new problem and the pleading looks of her subjects, Evileye could imagine that what this queen desired more than anything right now was to find a dark hole to hide in.

"We were just talking about the law of conquest and no one objected then," Shiva said matter-of-factly. "So why the objection now?"

Unable to endure the humiliation any longer the middle aged noble furiously stepped forward and approached her. "You know very well why we object! Who are you to covet our lands for yourself? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO I AM YOU LITTLE BI-"

The man's voice trailed there and his expression became fearful. No one knew how it happened. One moment he was angrily stomping towards Shiva and the next she was pointing a katana as long as her body at his throat. Many audibly gulped as they stared at the weapon. Fear and awe merged as they gazed at the golden hilt and crystal blade. Large amounts of magic pulsed from the blade of the sword, scaring Evileye to her core. The weapon in Shiva's hand was definitely a legendary weapon, one of a higher grade than Kilineiram.

"You know, I hate nobles," Shiva said softly. No one missed the underlined threat in her voice. "They are arrogant and entitled, believing the world should kneel at their feet because of their position, a position which was inherited and not earned." These words hit many of them hard and Shiva paused to let them sink in. "Now mortal, consider your last words carefully because they might be your last."

There it is again, Evileye thought. It was the second time word mortal was used to describe the man. Clearly that was how Shiva and Ramiel viewed humans, which meant they were of a different race. They must be Heteromorphs, but what race? Among all the race groups Heteromorphs were the most numerous and diverse. Evileye knew of very few races which resembled humans, but she could not place them. They were probably of a race she had never encountered before.

It's not like we're obligated to fight them, she thought to herself. The only reason Blue Rose was here was to protect the queen. If Shiva decided to kill the foolish noble right now they would not do anything, not like they wanted to anyway. Both Lakyus, Gargaran and even the twins were watching him with disdain.

"If you have an issue with it you're welcome to retake them," the white haired woman went on. "But if you plan to do that expect resistance on my end."

The four nobles backed down when they heard that and could only respond with eyes full of hatred. Seeing that her warning had been received Shiva gave a satisfied smile and withdrew her sword. In that moment it turned into a magic staff, which she held close to her. "I appreciate your cooperation," she said in a tone that took obvious jabs at the middle aged noble. "Now as lord of those cities my first act will be to offer them to Queen Draudiron Oriculus."

"WHAT!"

Everyone was surprised at this young woman's actions, especially the four nobles she had blatantly robbed and the queen herself. What had been a look of despair on Draudiron's face now became one of shock and confusion, then her eyes became teary.

The four noblemen were of course not going to let it go so easily. "What! You can't do this! Your Majes-"

"Gentlemen remember those are my lands. I can do with them as I please," Shiva interrupted them. "If you have any grievances please take them up with me." That shut them up, prompting her to continue. "I have no interest in ruling, but I also don't want to give the lands to people who care nothing of the commoners." She turned to face the queen and looked her right in the eyes. "Which is why I'm giving them to you your Majesty. I only ask for two simple favours in return."

The queen did not take long to reply even though she appeared hesitant. "Please name them."

"The first is that you not return the lands to these fools," Shiva stated seriously. "I would take it as a personal insult after all my efforts. The second favour, I would like to speak to you, in private."

Those words caught everyone by surprise. Suddenly the entire hall erupted in protests with many people demanding to know why Shiva would ask for a private audience. Some among them blatantly claimed that she wanted to assassinate the queen. Even Blue Rose did not know how to react. They were hired to protect Draudiron. That would not be possible if they left her alone.

"Your Majesty-" Lakyus began, but she was interrupted.

"It's fine," the queen shot her down. Her gaze turned to Shiva. "I would happy to oblige. Everyone, please leave the room!"

Her tone left no room for debate. Everyone filed out of the room, many of who muttered angrily to each other, obviously dissatisfied with the way the meeting had gone. Blue Rose followed after Ramiel and Niahoggr.

"Is this wise?"Tina whispered as they filed out.

"No it's not," Lakyus replied in a resigned manner. "But there's nothing we can do. The queen herself requested it."

"It's not like we would have been much help anyway," Evileye added. "That Niahoggr doesn't appear too strong but Ramiel and Shiva are beyond our level."

"Really?" Tia asked, surprised.

"I guessed as much," Gargaran said calmly. She looked at Tia. "Weren't you on the battlefield yesterday?"

"I was," Tia said unhappily. "You knocked me out, remember?"

"Oh," Gargaran responded as if recalling the incident. "I don't think we need to worry about anything though. She seems like a good person."

"I hope so," Evileye said quietly. "I truly hope so"

Silence reined after everyone left. Draudiron could not calm her heart as she looked at Shiva. Sure she had accepted her request for them to talk in private but she did it because she feared what the woman would do if she had refused. She could not help feel a little on edge. What did the woman want to discuss with her?

"I thought they'd never leave," Shiva sighed, much to her surprise. The young woman's face loosened up and her manner of speaking became less formal. "Seriously, those guys are so annoying. How do you stand them?"

Draudiron's response was an awkward "hahaha."

"All that talking has given me a craving for fried meat," Shiva continued. Her tone, though informal, was now much more polite than when the room had been occupied. "What about you? You hungry?"

"Er..." Draudiron clearly did not know how to react to this. Shiva's change of character had her completely off balance. "Sure."

"Great!" Shiva said with a smile. Then she muttered, "[Gate]"

Before Draudiron's eyes a vortex of complete darkness opened up, causing her to panic. However, her panic turned to bewilderment when two women emerged from the darkness. They wore white tunics that covered them from neck to toe and veils atop their heads. They did not hide their faces though, and both of them wore a peculiar golden necklace with a six winged figure. Their appearance surprised Draudiron even more. Although she could did not know what their necklaces signified she was familiar with the clothes they wore, after all they were common in the Slane Theocracy. These women wore habids, they were nuns!

But what would nuns be doing setting up a table for us? Her gaze turned Shiva once more. Just who was this person? Not only could Shiva cast a spell she was sure only existed in legends but she also had servants who were nuns. Under normal circumstances Draudiron would have thought the young woman was a religious leader. However, that notion flew out upon recalling the company the girl kept.

"Thank you for your help," Shiva told the two nuns after they had gone back and forth, in and out of the dark portal, to set up the table.

The expressions on the nuns' faces were ones of elation, as if they were in the presence of a deity. "Th-th-there's no need to thank us Sh-Shiva-sama!" one of them cried with much difficulty. "We'll do anything for you!"

After witnessing this Draudiron realised that Shiva would keep surprising her and thereby keep her off balance for as long as they were alone. It could be that this was part of her ploy to get the upper hand on whatever they were going to discuss. She decided that from then on she would do her best not be astounded by the young woman.

"Ah!" Shiva exclaimed with elation as she looked at the food on the table. "Those cooks have really outdone themselves. Shrimp, beef, lobster, sushi, chicken and pork, I have to thank whoever made this meal." She let go of her staff, letting it float midair, and sat at the table. Then she looked at Draudiron. "Okay your Majesty. Time to eat."

Draudiron was a little suspicious of her invitation. What kind of game was this woman playing? She left her throne and joined her at the table though. Obviously she did not believe Shiva was trying to poison her. With the obvious disparity in their strengths there would be no need for the white haired woman to scheme against her.

By the time she sat down at the table the other woman had already filled her plate with pork and was digging into it with a lot of enthusiasm. The silverware by her side was completely ignored as she grasped the meat with her hands and bit into it like an animal. Draudiron was a little put off by the lack of table manners. She's behaving like an animal!

After finishing her slab of meat Shiva looked at the Draconic Queen, who had not touched the food yet. Draudiron was surprised to see that despite her uncouth manner of dining there were no food bits on her face or clothes.

"There's no need to keep up appearances," Shiva said to her, picking up another piece of meat. "It's only us girls in here. The room has been completely sealed off from everything else. No one will see or hear us."

The statement that was meant to be reassuring had the opposite effect. If the throne room was completely sealed off from the rest of the world then no matter what happened here no one would be aware of it. That was a very scary thought.

Some of the food on the table Draudiron had never seen before, like shellfish and raw fish. However, she did not shy away from them. People from different regions had different food and customs, some of which might be better than the ones she is familiar with. As a ruler Draudiron fully embraced that notion. She scooped the raw fish onto her plate.

"That's sushi," Shiva told after seeing her uncertainty. "It use to be a popular dish in my country. You usually eat them with chopsticks." Shiva pointed to two thin wooden sticks on at the queen's side. "But they are a little hard to handle. A fork would be more appropriate."

Draudiron took her advice and stabbed the sushi with her fork. Then she brought it to her mouth and tasted it and- Oh Gods! This is so good! She took another slice.

Ten minutes passed in which both parties quietly savoured the food. Draudiron was enjoying the flavour of exotic dishes while Shiva was finally learning how certain foods tasted like. Back in her world these dishes could not be prepared anymore or were too expensive. For example all fish species used for sushi were extinct and shellfish was mutated and inedible. As for pork it was so rare one literally had to sell both kidneys to obtain just a little bit, and sometimes it might not be enough. Not that Shiva was complaining. She had grown up in stable family. Both her parents had been winners and could at least afford solid food. Most people on Earth never got the chance to savour food. They got their nourishment from plastic sacks filled with liquid nutrients.

"How is the food?" she asked the queen.

"Very good," Draudiron replied. Shiva smiled at the response and returned to her own, she was now eating lobster. After another minute of silence the childlike queen put down her utensils and asked a question. "Shiva-sama, how is it that you came to be acquainted with the Shadow Dragon Lord?"

She had been shocked that the golem following this young woman was brimming with wild magic. Her disbelief had increased when he was introduced as Niahoggr D'zar. From then on Draudiron refused to think about the fact that he was obediently following this young woman. For someone of such repute to take orders from Shiva said a lot about her strength. Draudiron felt that it madealso made her more mysterious.

"Some of my subordinates stumbled upon his lair and we came to an agreement," Shiva answered casually. "It's not a particularly interesting story."

"Oh," Draudiron of course felt the woman was down playing the encounter but she did not dare to question her further. She returned to her food, or had planned to before Shiva interrupted her.

"Forgive my rudeness your Majesty," she began. "Why do you disguise yourself as a child?"

The question froze the Dragon Queen's actions. It was common knowledge that her age did not correspond to her appearance but no one had ever asked her reason for taking the form of a child. Of course her minister had been the one who had suggested it, apparently to make herself more appealing to her subjects.

"Er..." she truly did not know how to respond.

"You look cute," Shiva continued. "But I find it a tragedy that you have to use such a form to rule your country. Sure your childish form has brought you the love of your people but not their respect, and especially not that of neighbouring countries. Perhaps that was the reason why beastmen attacked your country. That and the fact that your and predecessors hadn't done a thing about it."

Draudiron was speechless. She sensed that this was the real reason Shiva had requested a private audience with her and when they got down to business the other party was not pulling any punches. Shiva's comment made her feel ashamed of herself and a little angry at the woman. As if I don't already know, she thought to herself.

"What would you know?" she snarled. Her current expression did not fit her childish appearance. All thoughts of politeness were abandoned. "Do you think I like looking like this? This form is the reason many of my supporters stuck with me despite the ongoing crisis. It's not like I have the power to singlehandedly destroy countries! Do I look like fucking Landfall to you?"

For the first time since meeting her she saw uncertainty in the woman's eyes. Her outburst had surprised Shiva and herself even more. Whether to stay in her current form or return to her original appearance was a question she asked herself on a daily basis. If not for the pleas of her minister she would have long discarded it. As much love as this childish appearance garnered her the country's love it made her peers view her as a child and even attracted letches like Cerebrate. She definitely did not appreciate his attention! So yes, even if she was being extremely antagonistic what would this woman know? She knew not what Draudiron had been through.

It only took a moment for Shiva to recover and respond, and her tone was not as hostile as the queen's. "Sure your methods might have earned you the support of your people, but this is not the conduct a ruler should have. People follow rulers not because they want to protect them, but because they want to be protected by them. You let the beastmen gain a foothold in your country and I bet you've been trying to reassure them everything is going to be fine while doing nothing about the problem."

At the words of the woman Draudiron could not help but feel even more ashamed. Everything Shiva said was true. While the beastmen had been attacking the villages on their borders for generations no one had done a thing about it. Both she and her predecessors had allowed them to do as they pleased in hopes of appeasing them and avoiding them. All that had done was embolden the Beastman Kingdom over the years until they decided to forgo the small-time raids and launch a full-scale invasion. If Shiva had not appeared the previous day she would have been forced to sacrifice countless souls to repel them with wild magic.

"What would you have me do?" she said weakly. In that moment a dam broke and tears streamed down her face. "We do have the power to protect ourselves and even have to beg other nations to help us."

Shiva watched her sob for about a minute before she spoke. Her tone was slightly annoyed. "First off wipe those tears away. They are unbefitting of a ruler." Draudiron was shocked by her cold tone, but obeyed. "Now return to your original form. Proudly displaying your true form is a sign of confidence, something every ruler needs."

This time Draudiron hesitated. "What about my clothes?"

"What about them?" Shiva looked confused.

"When I change they will tear. The clothes that fit my true form are in my chaimbers."

"Oh," Shiva began to scratch the back of her hand. "I did not thing about that." In a much lower voice she muttered. "So your clothes don't change to accommodate the wearer?"

"Huh? Of course not," Draudiron replied. "Only clothes infused with magic do that and they're expensive. I only have two pairs of those."

"Oh," Shiva said. She stretched out her hand and a black elegant dress suddenly appeared in it. "You can wear this. However, I'll need it back after we're done. Azazel and Ein won't appreciate me giving Echidna's stuff away."

Draudiron stood up and took the dress without arguing. Her eyes glazed as she looked at it. Just from the texture of the dress she could tell that it was worth more than all her clothes put together. She hesitated to put it on.

"If you feel uncomfortable changing in my presence I could look the other way until you're done," Shiva offered.

"No. I'm fine," Draudiron assured.

She switched out of her clothes and put on the dress, it hung quite comfortably on her body. Then she began to change. Her height increased to the point where she became almost as tall as Shiva. Her face matured and her body became more curvature. After the transformation was done where there was previously a child stood an elegant woman whose age ranged from early thirties to forties.

"You look amazing," Shiva complimented her, causing her to blush. It had been a long time since someone complimented this side of her.

"Thank you," she replied. Her voice was sultry and mature.

"Now then," Shiva quickly moved on with her agenda. "I proposed this private conversation because I wanted to propose an alliance."

"An alliance?" Draudiron was surprised. "Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Shiva replied. "I can help you and you can help me." She paused for a while and continued. Her voice this time contained a bit of scorn. "Yesterday I was watching your soldiers on the battlefield and I couldn't help but wonder; the person who trained them should be hanged. I've never seen such pathetic soldiers. It's almost as if they were peasants."

They were peasants, Draudiron almost rebuked. If she said that she knew the woman would not think well of her for sending untrained commoners off to battle. In the end she decided to keep quiet.

"The general was much worse," Shiva continued. "There had been no planning, no strategy. It looked like he simply sent the soldiers out and hoped for the best." After anther moment of silence she said. "I can help train your soldiers."

"And what would you want in return?" Draudiron asked the young woman.

"Nothing much," Shiva replied casually. "I simply want information on the neighbouring area and access to the Mages and Adventurers' Guilds."

Draudiron thought about it for a moment. On her side it was a good deal and would not cost much. However, there were a few problems with that.

"I don't know if information I have will satisfy you," she said. "And I have no power over the guilds. What do you want from them?"

The reason the Adventurers' Guild was left alone by countries was because its battle might surpassed that off the countries and Adventurers valued their freedom. Otherwise the countries would have intervened long ago and demanded fealty. What would Shiva want with such individuals?

"Having more than one source of information won't hurt," the young woman simply replied. "If you can't do anything about the guilds then it's fine, I'm sure I can get in on my own. I just wanted preferential treatment. So do we have an alliance or not?"

Draudiron did not have to think about it for long. This was a good deal for her. However-

"What are your true intentions?"

There was no way she was going to believe Shiva would enter an alliance that was so clearly disadvantageous to her. She must have another agenda.

"I simply wish to help out a fellow female ruler. If my actions seem too suspicious you do not have to accept."

"If you put it like that then I accept," Draudiron responded. She could worry later about what the woman was truly after.

"Good," Shiva said and she gave her a wide smile. "We can discuss the formalities later. As for now; are you going to let the beastmen get away with what they did to your country or do you want us to retaliate?"

-END-

Heteromorphic Races

Azazel: The Demonic Master of Sacrifice

Job: Co-Leader of the Watchers

Alignment: Extreme Evil, Sense of Justice: -500

Racial Level: Angel 10

Dominion 10

Cherub 15

Job: Mage 15

Wizard 15

Warlock 15

Sage 5

Prince of Darkness 10

Racial Level: 35, Job level: 60, Total Level: 95

HP: 55, MP: 95, PHYATK: 10, PHYDEF: 60, AGI: 20, MAGATK: 90, MAGDEF: 75, RESIST: 75, SPECIAL: 80

####

Heteromorphic Races

Asbeel: Angel of Destruction

Job: One of the Watchers of Babylon

Alignment: Great Evil, Sense of Justice: -400

Racial Level: Angel 10

Power: 10

Cherub: 7

Job Level: Gunner 15

Sharpshooter 15

Gunslinger 10

Spitfire 15

Chaos 10

Racial Level: 27, Job Level: 65, Total Level: 92

HP: 70, MP: 50, PHYTAK: 65, PHYDEF: 55, AGI: 50, MAGATK: 50, MAGDEF: 55, RESIST: 60, SPECIAL: 75

It's been three months since my last update. I apologise. My life was a mess, still a mess, and I was stubbornly trying to post chapter 8 and 9 together.

Thanks to everyone who supports this. I'll try to update faster next time.